President's Message

By Joseph D. Leone, CFP®, CPA, CLU, President

As this is my first occasion to address the membership, I want to thank you for the opportunity to serve as your president this year!  My time on the board and as a committee member has been quite rewarding.  I have made many new friends, learned so much from my colleagues and have seen firsthand the great volunteer work that our members deliver to our community.  

First, thanks to all of you who participated in the “Do One Thing” reception on January 19, 2010.  The reception was a success as board members and FPANJ members discussed the many opportunities planners have to help people in the community as well as your fellow members. 

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January 19th Celebration Event

By Darryn Murdoch, LCSW
Membership (Recruitment) Director

On Tuesday Jan 19th at the Woodbridge Hilton, FPANJ held their annual celebration event. This year's theme was "Do 1 Thing".  The premise of the well-attended event was to show members how they could be part of something bigger than themselves, and that a little bit of effort, done together, can lead to big change.   The “Do 1 Thing” concept was pioneered by the Massachusetts chapter of FPA and we used it to help our members kick off the New Year on an active note. The point was driven home that "One Thing Leads to Another" and if we all get involved, we do make a difference and that impact does shape our profession! 

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FPANJ 2010 Board of Directors
  • Chairman/Past President
    Michael Gibney, CFP®
  • President
    Joseph Leone, CFP®, CPA, CLU
  • President-Elect
    Tom Duffy, CFP®, MBA
  • Secretary/Treasurer
    James Freisen, CFP®, CPA
  • Public Relations Co-Director
    Leslie Beck, CFP®, MBA
  • Education Director
    Tom Duffy, CFP®, MBA
  • Allied Professionals Director
    Gregory Esposito, CFP®
  • Conference Director
    Michael Gibney, CFP®
  • Pro Bono Director
    Bob Gregg
  • Public Awareness Director
    Omega Hartman, CFP®
  • Government Relations Director
    Jason Hochstadt, CFP®
  • Business Partners Director
    Shikha Mittra, CFP®, CMFC®, CRPS®, MBA
  • Membership (Recruitment) Director
    Darryn Murdoch, LCSW 
  • Public Relations Co-Director
    Mary Ellen Nicola, CFP®
  • Career Developtment Director
    Damien Paumi, CFP®
  • Technology Director
    Charles Roberson, CFP®, CLU
  • Membership (Retention) Director
    Todd Stanard, CFP®, ChFC
  • Chapter Executive
    Maria T. Eckert

William Paterson Winter 2010 Hands-On Finance Training Program

By Leslie Beck, CFP®, MBA
Public Relations Co-Director

Since 2007, William Paterson has hosted a “hands on” financial planning training program for students from Zhejiang University of Technology of Hangzhou, China.  The twice-yearly program, run by Dr. Haiyang Chen, WPU’s Director of their Global Financial Services Institute, also provides an opportunity for WPU College of Business students to train in China.

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Spring 2010 Conference

Date: May 12, 2010
Location: Hilton Woodbridge, Iselin
Time: All Day Conference
Registration: Coming Soon!

We hope to see you at our upcoming Spring Conference, scheduled for Wednesday, May 12th , at the Woodbridge Hilton in Iselin, NJ.  This year, we will be addressing the always-timely topic of Estate Planning.  We understand that many of our members have been asking for more advanced estate planning topics, and we believe we have this covered with our theme Estate Planning 360! We will begin the day with an update on the latest news involving the Federal estate planning laws.  As you know, the current estate tax laws expired at the end of 2009.  We will learn about what is being done to address the concerns of our clients who may be facing uncertainty given the lack of effort by our lawmakers to address this issue, and what pitfalls and opportunities may lie ahead.

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October 4 – 10, 2010
Celebrate by participating in events across the country

National News
  • FPA-ActiFi Adviser Technology Series - From 2010-2011, FPA members will receive a total of seven in-depth technology reports at no cost, sponsored by TD Ameritrade Institutional.
  • FPA Retreat 2010 - April 22-25, 2010 - San Antonio, Texas - Retreat delves into the depths of financial planning, allows for reflection and deeper thinking while challenging the mind, sets the direction of the profession. Opportunities to share meaningful conversations, innovative ideas and tried-and-true best practices with the "who's who" of the financial planning profession.
  • Spreading the Word about the Profession - Catch up on the latest FPA buzz! Don't just take our word for it – read what top newspapers and media outlets are saying about FPA.
  • FPA’s Practice Management Center - Your source for practice management solutions

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Government Relations

By Jason Hochstadt, CFP®, AIF®
Government Relations Director

Unfortunately, the Senior Financial Designation Abuse bills, supported by the FPANJ, were not among the many bills passed during the final days of the New Jersey legislative session. These bills would protect seniors from misleading and fraudulent marketing practices with respect to the use of senior-specific certifications and professional designations. The bills were introduced last year by Assemblyman Gary Schaer and Senator Kevin O'Toole.  Recently, committee member Bill Stratton spoke with Assemblyman Schaer, who said that the bills were victims of the legislator's end-of-session priorities. Assemblyman Schaer said this is good legislation and he will reintroduce his bill in the Assembly early in the new legislative session. Assuming this occurs, the Government Relations Committee will once again seek your support in informing your legislators of the Senior Financial Designation Abuse issues and the FPANJ's support for the bill. Reference www.njleg.state.nj.us  for information on New Jersey Legislature activities.

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Public Awareness

By Omega Hartman, CFP®
Public Awareness Director

FPA is the community that fosters the value of financial planning…and the New Jersey Chapter has been doing it year-round in all different venues. 

The Public Awareness Committee has partnered with community organizations, educational institutions, military, non-profit organizations, corporations, religious entities, and consumer groups to advance awareness of the value of financial planning in today’s economic and financial environment.   Financial empowerment is the hoped for byproduct of implementing the financial planning process.

 

Financial professionals get ready
for students and the 9:15am bell.

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Financial Helpline

Mayor Booker and Deputy Mayor Pryor surrounded by representative partner organizations supporting the Financial Helpline.

Financial Helpline Volunteers

The FPANJ would like to thank all of the volunteers that participated in The Newark Financial Helpline.


Teri Marks, FPANJ Member

 

Glenn Toussaint, FPANJ Member

 

Diane DeOliveira, FPANJ Member

 

Newark Mayor, Cory Booker
participates at the call center.

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